


Bubble Burst

by terryreviews



Series: An Odd Pair [4]
Category: Doctor Who (1963)
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-14
Updated: 2020-08-14
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:20:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,411
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25890490
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/terryreviews/pseuds/terryreviews
Summary: Jamie's hurt and the Doctor helps him.
Relationships: Second Doctor/Jamie McCrimmon
Series: An Odd Pair [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1822429
Comments: 8
Kudos: 19





	Bubble Burst

**Author's Note:**

> I've hurt my back several times before and it is one of the worst pains. It is second only to the dental pain I've experienced and it really can bring a person to tears depending on how bad it is. So, I used that as a basis for some light fluff between one of my favorite pairings.

It was as if a bubble had lodged itself into his spine. A persistent pressure that grew day by day. He twisted and stretched but nothing worked to stop the ache. So, he ignored it.

Until the day when the bubble burst.

He and the Doctor were in the main room, both on the floor with the column of the console open. Screws, chips, and wires were splayed next to a tray of standard and futuristic tools, and it was Jamie’s job to know which tools were what and hand them to the Doctor as he worked.

He had shifted around several times, griping in his mind that he should have brought a pillow to sit on when the Doctor first asked him to help with this. 

_“Oh it’ll only be a minute Jamie.”_

It was over an hour. He should have known better.

Currently, he was bent at the waist on his knees, peering into the open panel of the console, The Doctor on his back, tugging at something.

“Hand me the Hydro Fix Screw please,” he held out his hand for Jamie.

“Oh, aye, the wee purple twisty thing,” Jamie said. He saw the Doctor’s lips twitch.

“Yes Jamie, the wee purple screw.”

It took a moment to locate it, hidden under a large square computer chip, but he dutifully plopped it into the Doctor’s hand and waited for his next instruction.

With a few twists of his hand the Doctor stopped, surveyed his work and then said, “Oh, yes, yes I...I think that’s done it Jamie.”

“Does that mean we can get off the floor then?” He scooted back on his knees, letting the Doctor slide out from the panel.

“Yes, yes, we’re all done now. Thank you,” he smiled, “you were very helpful.”

Jamie tried to keep from looking too please, “och, it was nothing. Just handing you things.”

“And that was very helpful. It would’ve taken twice as long if I had to keep stopping to slide out and grab things,” the Doctor sat up and gave Jamie an affection pat to his cheek, “come along and we’ll see if we can get something to eat. Would you like a sandwich?” He jumped up nice and easy onto his feet.

“That’s sounds,” Jamie started to rise when suddenly, the bubble burst. A loud pop could clearly be heard and Jamie fell right back onto his knees, hands outstretched to catch his fall.

“Jamie! Oh, oh dear, what happened?” The Doctor was instantly by his side, hand resting on his shoulder.

For a long moment, it seemed all the wind was knocked out of him with the pain that radiated out. A dull, potent, throbbing pain that filled his lower back. 

“I...I can’t stand up.” He managed through gritted teeth, he closed his eyes and fought against the tears that tried to force their way out. He was a piper, a fighter, and the muscle of the TARDIS crew. He’d trained and fought with his bare hands, had jumped and dived and ran, all with pain. But nothing compared to this sudden, intensely focused, pain in his spine that, when he tried to move, sent another reverberating shock wave through him. He wouldn’t cry. Not from this and not in front of the Doctor.

Very carefully, the Doctor ran his hand down Jamie’s back. When he reached the tail bone, Jamie hissed. 

“Mmm,” the Doctor said, “could be a pulled muscle, a hurt disc,” he made a considering noise, “Alright Jamie, I’m going to be right back.”

Jamie heard him leave, his shoes tapping very quickly as he disappeared. 

Oh, it hurt, it hurt so much. And Jamie couldn’t help feel more than embarrassed that this simple little back sprain of all things is what was beating him. He tried to move again, letting out a little yelp.

“Jamie, don’t try to move just yet!” 

He hadn’t heard the Doctor come in. He’d thought that he was alone and could let his gaurd down for a fraction of a second, but unlike with the fixing of the TARDIS, the Doctor was quick this time.

He tried to speak but a new wave hit him and he clenched his eyes all the more tight.

“Here,” the Doctor was kneeling next to him. He couldn’t see him but he felt his air, “I’ve brought a few pillows for you. I’m going to slip them under you and you can just let your weight sink into them.”

There was the rustle of fabric and Jamie felt the pillows brush under his body as the Doctor shoved them under him.

“You can let your weight down now Jamie.” 

Jamie, gingerly, lowered himself and found the entire front of his body suddenly absorbed and supported by the most comfortable and sturdy pillows he’d ever felt and let out a little sigh.

“Those are very special pillows from a hospital in the distant future,” the Doctor was saying. Jamie could hear him moving about, the rattle of something, “they sort of...inflate and form fit around whomever them are meant to be supporting. It, sort of, senses what your pain is and best adjusts itself. Which is why it’s taking all of your weight but still keeping you bent so as not to disrupt your back.”

Jamie felt something press against his lips and instinctively opened his mouth feeling two foul tasting, small, things slip inside. He nearly gagged when the Doctor said,“here you go,” a cool glass pressed against his lips and he managed to catch some of the water the Doctor tipped into his mouth, leaving some of it to dribble around the edges.

“Quite alright,” the Doctor removed the glass and patted Jamie’s chin with his handkerchief, “good boy.”

“What was that you gave me?” Jamie finally opened his eyes, damp as they were, and tried to look at the Doctor as the pillow surged forward to cradle his cheek and let him rest his neck. The Doctor shifted so he was on his side, allowing Jamie to see him properly.

“Muscle relaxer, pain reliever, and anti-inflammatory pills. I suspect you may have pulled a muscle or, if you hurt a disc, the muscles will still be strained and inflamed and thus will swell up given everything is connected, but with the medicine it should be alleviated within the next hour or so. It’s very potent stuff. I had intended to give you a hypo shot, but I couldn’t find it. I was trying to get back to you as quickly as possible. I’d already taken too long to find the pillows and to have to sift through to find the hypo shot that McCoy gave me...well I could have that.”

Jamie said nothing for a while, just listed to the Doctor’s voice, “you didn’t take long,” he assured, “hardly noticed you were gone.” A warmth spread in his chest as the Doctor smiled.

“I’m glad.”

They looked at each other for a long moment before Jamie cleared his throat, feeling the heat rise to his cheeks, “so, what happens now?”

“Well,” the Doctor looked him over, “as I said, it’ll take approximately an hour for the medicine to kick in completely and then you’ll be able to stand up. But,” he sounded regretful, “I’m afraid you’re stuck here until then.”

“Oh,” Jamie said, casting his eyes down. Suddenly the Doctor was up on his feet and moved out of sight and Jamie felt his heart drop a bit. The Doctor didn’t have to stay here with him. He was just a wee bit hurt and...

The Doctor was suddenly back, dropping a pillow of his own on the floor, “not as comfortable as yours,” he was saying as he sat down, “but serviceable.”

“You don’t have to stay here with me,” Jamie said, his heart swelling, “I’m alright.”

“I know you are,” the Doctor reached out a hand and ruffled Jamie’s hair, “you always are,” he had a book on his lap, a thin thing with a bright cover, “but I suspect you’d get rather bored laying there for an hour.”

“Won’t you get bored sitting there?”

The Doctor smiled, “not with you Jamie.” He opened the book and said, “I think you’ll like this one. It’s a fun little adventure story. Should fill up the hour nicely.”

Jamie couldn’t hide his grin and closed his eyes as the Doctor began to read to him.


End file.
